Matthew 5:8 (NLT)
God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God.
The Message puts it this way:
You’re blessed when you get your inside world- your mind and heart- put right. Then you can see GOD in the outside world.
We all have four types of “sight”: physical, spiritual, emotional, and mental. Let’s call the mental, the mind’s eye. And our mind’s eyes are different as well, depending upon our level of understanding. Allow me to use Psalm 23 as an example. Some read this portion and get absolutely nothing. Some find it a catchy poem. Some draw comfort from it. Some realize the meaning of the images portrayed. But some, some see the message of the Good Shepherd and desire relationship like that.
How we “see” anything depends upon the condition of our heart and mind. To have a pure mind we must be radically changed by devoting our imagination, intelligence, and thinking to Jesus. We must be willing to put into practice the Be-Attitudes we’ve been discussing daily. If not, the mind’s eye needs to be plucked out (see Matthew 5:22-29). You see where I’m going with this (pun intended). Our inward vision must change before there is to be any sort of real change on the outside. It better to pluck out the disease of the inner eye before the physical eyes really get us in trouble and we’re acting out what’s in our minds.
Application: Guard your mind, knowing that the filth on the inside will come out unless we eradicate it quickly.
Mindful Meditation: Search your thoughts. When you find unpure thoughts, pray the Lord remove them from you. Replace those thoughts with prayer, Scripture verses, or ways to help others.
